Kirk Nieuwenhuis

The Brewers claimed Nieuwenhuis off waivers in December as part of their 40-man roster makeover, in part because of his ability to handle center field. For his career, Nieuwenhuis has hit .245/.314/.4...

The Mets quickly signed Michael Cuddyer as a free agent in November, leaving two veterans with big contracts (Cuddyer and Curtis Granderson) to flank Gold Glove winner Juan Lagares in center field. Nieuwenhuis will battle for the Mets' fourth outfielder spot with Matt den Dekker in spring training, and both left-handed hitting outfielders will likely be limited to occasional work against right-handed pitching barring a couple of injuries to the starting trio. In back-to-back seasons in a limited role, Nieuwenhuis has shown an ability to take walks, which pushed his OBP to a career-best .346 in 2014. Over the past three seasons, Cuddyer has missed 206 out of a possible 486 games, which ultimately may pave the way for Nieuwenhuis to see stretches of increased playing time if he can outproduce den Dekker.

2014

Nieuwenhuis opened the season in the majors, but was quickly sent down to Triple-A. He reeled off a hot streak in late May and early June to earn a promotion, but after a brief spurt in early July, he faded again and went back to Las Vegas at the end of the month. Nieuwenhuis' stats in the minors were nothing to behold, but he did improve his strikeout and contact rates. He could earn a reserve outfielder role in the spring, where he would be utilized as a platoon player against right-handed pitching. He continues to struggle with lefties and has a .229/.323/.354 line against them over the past three seasons in the minors.

2013

Getting his first taste of the big leagues, Nieuwenhuis appeared to be slightly overmatched, delivering the highest strikeout percentage (31.2%) of his career and seeing a significant drop in his walk rate. Although he still projects as a fourth outfielder in the long run, Nieuwenhuis might be capable of winning the better share of a platoon in center field given the Mets' lack of alternatives currently in the mix. Check to make sure he's healthy this spring as his season ended with a torn plantar fascia in August after his demotion back to Triple-A.

2012

Before suffering a torn labrum in his left shoulder on a swing in early June that ultimately sidelined him for the year, Nieuwenhuis was having a strong 2011 at Triple-A Buffalo, batting .298/.403/.505 in 221 plate appearances. Nieuwenhuis has the ability to spray line drives to all fields, but struggles against lefties and still has issues with plate discipline, seen in 59 strikeouts over 188 at-bats last season. His mid-level power/speed potential as a left-handed batter, plus his ability to play all three outfield positions means that he likely profiles as a fourth outfielder rather than a starting center fielder in the majors.

2011

Nieuwenhuis, selected in the third round in 2008 out of Azusa Pacific, opened 2010 at Double-A Binghamton and continued his rapid rise, earning Eastern League All-Star honors while hitting .289 with 35 doubles, two triples, 16 home runs and 60 RBI to advance up to Triple-A Buffalo. His mediocre plate discipline caught up with him against advanced pitching as he struck out 39 times in 120 at-bats as a Bison after a 30:93 BB:K ratio for the B-Mets. Given his past performance, his power/speed potential as a left-handed batter, plus his ability to play all three outfield positions, he'll get more chances. However, he profiles more as a fourth outfielder than a strong regular.